Ice-making apparatus.



No. 670,247. Patennted Mar. I9, |90I.

A. H. 'BAUCI'L `ICE MAKING vPPARATUS.

(Application led Jan. 1B, 1901.)

(No Model.)

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{E2-EE- W/ TNE SSE S IN VE N 70H A TOHNEYS UNiTnio STaTns PaTnNT Trice.

AMBROSE HENRY RAUCH, OF BETHLEHEM, PENNSYLVANIA.

iCE=lVlAKlNG APPARATUS.

SPECFICATON forming' part of Letters Patent No. 670,247, dated March 19,190:1.

Application filed January 18, 1901. Serial No. 43,722. (No model.)

To all when@ t may concern:

Beit known that I, AMBRosE HENRY RAUCH, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of Bethlehem, in the county of Northampton and State ofPennsylvania., have invented a new and Improved Ice-Making Apparatus, ofwhich the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to improvements in ice-making apparatus.

In certain classes of ice-machines the ice particles or chips are turnedoff from the freezing-cylinder by a spiral conveyor and are assumed tobe cool enough to freeze together when collected and compressed. By suchmethod, however, the ice particles are constantly agitated before beingdischarged into the suction-pipe or solidifying device and thetemperature becomes so reduced that certain veins or l[hin films ofwater in a completed cake sink down, drawing in air, giving The cake aninferior appearance.

It is the object of my invention to provide an improved means forcollecting and discharging t-he ice particles without materialagitation, so that the final cake will bemore thoroughly frozen andsolidiiied.

I will describe an ice-machine embodying my invention and then point outthe novel features in the appended claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming part ofthis specification, in which similar characters of reference indicatecorresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1 is a section on the line a; ir of- 2 of an apparatus embodyingmy invention. Fig. 2 is a plan view thereof, and Fig. 3 is a section onthe line gj y of Fig. 2.

Referring to the drawings, 1 designates a preliminary freezing-tank,from which chips or particles of ice floating on or in the water aredischarged into a suction-pipe 2, leading to a slush-pump- The meansprovided for skimming oif and discharging the ice particles or chipsconsists of a series of scoops 3, mounted to swing on endlesscarrier-chains 4 and 5. Each scoop consists of a suitable metal framewith the bottom, back, and sides of screen material, so that Athe saidscoops will carry along the particles of ice, but will permit the waterto flow'through the scoops and back into the tank. The chain 4 extendsaround sprocket-wheels 6 and 7, while the chain 5 extends aroundsprocket-wheels 8 and 9. The sprocket-wheels 7 and 9 are mounted on ashaft 10, which has its bearings in boxes secured to the tank, while theshaft 11, on which the sprocket-wheels 6 and 8 are mounted, has bearingsin adjust-able boxes l2. These boxes 12 are made to move lengthwise ofthe tank and are adjustable by means of screws 13. The object inadjusting the said boxes is to'give a proper tension to thecarrierchains.

The scoops 3 are suiiiciently short to pass over the shafts 10 andllkwhile the said scoops hang in a Vertical position on the upperstretches of the carrier-chains, and on their backward movement, asindicated in Fig. 1, while passing through the water in the tank 1, thescoops are turned to a substantially horizontal position to gather upthe ice particles, as here shown, by means of guidetracks 14, extendedlengthwise of the tank. These guide-rails are curved downward at therear end and are curved upward at the forward or outlet end of the tank,the forward curve'being somewhat less than the curve at the rear end,and between these curved portions the tracks have a slight upwardinclination toward the outlet end. By this arrangement the scoops aregradually raised toward the surface of the water as they move toward theoutlet end, thus permitting the water that maybe scooped up to readilypass through the meshes of the scoops.

Arranged at the outlet end of the tank is a spring-actuated hammer orbufferl5,designed to be engaged by a scoop or by one ot' its trunnionswhen the said scoop is' about to discharge its load. The trunnion of ascoop gradually compresses the spring of the hammer until the scoop isat the moment of discharge. Then when released the upper short portionof the hammer strikes th'e trunnion, causing the ice particles toquickly pass olf the scoop and fall into the pipe 2. The shank 16 of thebucr or hammer extends through a bracket 17 and through a tube 18,extended outward from the bracket. A spring 19 is ar- IOO ranged betweena collar on the stem 16 and the outer end of the tube, as clearlyindicated in Fig. l.

During the operation it is necessary to admit a certain amount of waterto the pipe 2 to give the necessary mobility to the slush. 'lhis wateris to be discharged from the tank l, and the discharge through theoutlet 20 may be regulated or governed by means of a gate-valve 2l, uponwhich is a rack 22, engaging with a pinion 23 on a shaft 24, whichextends out through one side of the tank and is provided with acrank-handle 25.

The scoops may be secured to the carrierchains by any suitable means. Ihave here shown certain links of the chains as made in the form ofplates 26, through which the trunnions of the scoops pass, and as thesetrunnions are headed on the outer side the scoops will be held fromlateral movement.

Vhile I have shown my invention as arranged to discharge the i'ceparticles into a suction-pipe, it is possible that the ice particles maybe delivered into cans, in which the ice is to be solidly frozen in abrine-pit.

It willbe seen that when the scoops ente r the rear end of the tankthej,T will be gradually turned to a substantially horizontal positionby the rear curved ends of the guide-rails, and as they move along saidguide-rails they will scoop up and carry along particles of ice floatingon and in the water, and upon reaching the discharge end the free endsof the scoops will be tipped slightly upward until they reach the endsof the tracks, when their open ends will be turned down and the trunnionwill be struck by the buffer, with the result before mentioned. Boardsare placed at the sides of the carrier to keep the ice in the path ofthe scoops.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patentl. In an ice-machine,an apparatus fordelivering iceparticles from a freezing-tank, comprising an endless carrier movablethrough said tan k, a series of scoops mounted to swing on said carrier,each scoop having a perforated bottom, and guide rails extended throughthe tank, the said guide-rails being curved upward at the ends andserving to turn the scoops to substantially horizontal position, whilemoving through the tank, substantially as specified.

2. In an ice-machine, adevice for delivering ice particles from thepreliminary freezingtank, comprising an endless carrier movable throughthe tank, scoops mounted to swing on said carrier, means in the tank forholding the scoops in substantially horizontal position while passingthrough the tank, and a buiier at the outlet end of the tank forimparting a jarring movement to the scoops, substantially as specified.

3. In an ice-machine, a device for skimming and delivering ice particlesfrom a preliminary freezingtank, comprising an endless carrier, scoopsmounted to swing on said carrier, and guide-rails for the scoopsextended through the tank, the said guide-rails being turned upward atthe ends and portions of said rails between the turned-up ends beinginclined upward toward the outlet end of the tank, substantially asspecilied.

4E. A freezing-tank, having an outlet at one end, a valve for regulatingsaid outlet, a rack on said valve,a pinion engaging with the rack, and arod extended from the pinion to the outerside of the tank, an endlesscarrier movable through the tank, and scoops carried by said carrier,substantially as specified.

5. A preliminary freezing tank, shafts mounted on said tank, one of saidshafts being adjustable toward and from the other of said shafts,sprocket-wheels on the shafts, carrierchains extending around thesprocket-wheels, perforated scoops mounted to swing on thecarrier-chains, guide-rails extended through the tank for turning andholding said scoops in a substantially horizontal position while passingthrough the material in the tank, and means for imparting a shockingmotion to a scoop while discharging, substantially as specified.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence ol two subscribing witnesses.

AMBROSE HENRY RAUCH.

\Vitnesses:

WILLIAM J. FINK, Guo. L. BAUM.

